The Hammer and The Ice
by Grav
Summary: In the course of her short and mortal life, the heart of Jane Foster has been twice touched by the sons of Asgard. Jane/Thor, AU


**AN**: So the Avengers happened! And then I wrote a very small AU where, well, Jane gets turned by Loki and builds the machine and subconsciously sabotages it. Because that would have been cool! Obviously, it's an AU, so I tweaked the plot in a couple spots.

**Disclaimer**: Ahahahahahahahahahahahaha, I wish.

**Spoilers**: Um, the movie? And also Thor?

**Rating**: Teen

**Pairing**: Jane/Thor

**Summary**: In the course of her short and mortal life, the heart of Jane Foster has been twice touched by the sons of Asgard.

* * *

**The Hammer and The Ice**

In the course of her short and mortal life, the heart of Jane Foster has been twice touched by the sons of Asgard. The fair-haired Thor, whose mighty hammer rings of clear steel and bears the weight of justice, touched her heart with his own, and for her sake rent the galaxy in twain. Loki, the blue-dark trickster who thirsted most of all for vengeance, touched her heart with his cruelty and with his malice, and by that unspoken power to her own undoing was she held utterly in his thrall.

* * *

First, it was very hot.

It was very hot because her heart was racing and she was afraid. More than anyone else in the room, possibly the world, she knew what waited on the other side of the tesseract's door. It was true, she dreamed of the door opening again, of the rainbow and the bridge and the strong arms of the god who loved her, but she knew it was a fantasy. What waited there was terror, and terror was knocking.

It was also very hot because there was a lot of weapons discharging all around her, and that led to both anxiety and the burning of gunpowder, neither of which were known for their cooling effects.

And then he saw her, and knew her, and smiled.

* * *

Then it was very cold.

She thought he meant to run her through, and then she wished he had. She didn't want to die, particularly, but she'd imagined from watching various crime and medical dramas that getting pierced through the heart with something sharp was at least quick; a flash of hot red and then the endless black of oblivion. This was an enveloping, engulfing blue, that sealed her heart from her body, and froze her mind, though she screamed against it.

It did end, of course, and when it did she stood in front of the great god Loki and wondered why it had bothered her so much in the first place. It was cold, yes, but it was safe. And sure.

In the quiet of her empty mind, there was a muffled sound, like a hammer, wrapped in wool.

* * *

Then there was fog.

There was something she was supposed to be doing, something she was supposed to be working on that involved the sky and the stars, but her hands were busy here in the lab. She built a machine she should not have been able to build, and never wondered where the stolen knowledge came from. She was inspired by the god, after all; another artist in a long line. It made sense that she would be able to work wonders for his glory.

Once, when she was bent over the desk, soldering iron in one hand and a magnifying glass in the other, he came and stood beside her. She felt his hand against her hair, and turned into his touch.

"Not yet," he said. "First my brother must fail to rescue you."

The hammer swung harder, and began to sound more clearly.

* * *

Then there was wind.

She stood on the top of the tower of the god, and looked down upon the burning city. There was a hole in the sky above her, and death rained down, fanning the flames below. The hammer in her mind shrieked as it tore through the air, but the wind was shrill about her, and it was difficult to hear anything but shouts.

On the balcony, mere metres from where she stood, the gods fought, and her heart stood like ice in her chest despite the pounding within and without. The fair one looked up and saw her, and for just a moment, the wind was nothing and the hammer rang true. She turned to the machine she had wrought, and the blue-dark one was there. The wind surged as he picked her up, and then snuffed out like a candle when he cast her down.

In her unconscious mind, the ice began to melt.

* * *

Then there came a widow.

She leapt to the roof and rolled hard on the landing, and Jane marveled at her grace. She had seen gods fight, but she had not seen anything like this woman before. The widow held her face between black gloved hands, and Jane knew it was her eyes the other woman sought. Jane did not blink.

She listened as the widow told her what was happening, what pain and suffering her own hands had caused, and when she would have despaired, the widow took her hands, and reminded her that her will had not been her own. The battle on the streets below was strangely muted, but she could hear the ring of a hammer, the hiss of a shield, and that the noise reminded her of something her heart had fought to keep from her mind.

In frantic tones, she relayed her tale to the widow; told the weakness she had battled so hard to build into the machine. And she saw what many only saw before their deaths.

The Black Widow smiled.

* * *

Then there was him.

He was battered and his cloak was torn, and his brow was lined with worry for the broken god he held on a leash, but when he saw her, clear-eyed and falling-star rushing towards him, none of that mattered. He caught her in the air and swung her about, and the broken god cursed while the others laughed to see such joy.

They whispered to each other then, and the others pretended not to hear. Words of love and missing and regret and absolution passed between them, and never did he put her down, nor did she look away from his face. And when the words were said, she kissed him, once for memory, and he kissed her, once for distance. Then he set her on her feet, and turned again to the broken god.

She did not look away from him until he was once again gone from her, but when her eyes clouded over, it was only tears.

* * *

Then there were stars.

And Jane Foster, whose heart was twice touched and strong, looked up.

* * *

**finis**

Gravity_Not_Included, May 9, 2012


End file.
